New Jersey’s Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Representative Mikie Sherrill, is now reportedly confronting new questions about nepotism after two of her children were admitted this year to the U.S. Naval Academy — the same institution where she was once implicated in a cheating scandal.
In June, Ms. Sherrill issued a press release celebrating 24 students from her district who received appointments to military academies, including her children, Lincoln and Margaret Hedberg. “I am so proud of all the young men and women from NJ-11 who are reporting to the military academies or academy preparatory programs this summer,” she wrote, noting that her own time at the Naval Academy had prepared her to “lead servicemembers as a military officer.”
The release, however, did not identify the Hedberg siblings as her children, nor did the accompanying photo include them. That omission fueled accusations on social media that Ms. Sherrill had sought to conceal her role. “Mikie Sherrill’s two kids are at the Naval Academy, one of the hardest schools to get into, because of her nepotism,” Rasmussen pollster Mark Mitchell posted on X. “Meanwhile, some hardworking, impoverished, and unconnected teenagers lose out on a life dream they earned.”
Journalist Jennifer Jean Miller echoed that sentiment: “Far left politicians like Mikie Sherrill like to virtue signal about privilege…yet have no problem exerting their own privilege. How did Mikie Sherrill’s two kids get into the Naval Academy? Did two other deserving students miss out because of her nepotism?”
Admissions at the Naval Academy are among the nation’s most selective, with only 9 percent of applicants accepted. According to Ms. Sherrill’s release, only nine students from her district were admitted this year.
While critics have claimed she directly nominated one of her children, her office insists she recused herself. Senator Cory Booker’s office confirmed he nominated one, while a spokesperson for former Senator George Helmy confirmed the other child’s nomination. “Each year, Senator Booker, as a member of Congress, has the honor of nominating qualified young people,” his office said. Candidates, the statement added, undergo “an extensive application and screening process” to ensure selections are based on merit.
Ms. Sherrill defended the process. “In order to remove even the appearance of a conflict of interest, my children did not compete in my office’s service academy nomination process,” she told Fox News Digital. Instead, she said, they applied through New Jersey’s senators and “each earned nominations on their own.”
Still, the campaign’s explanation has not quieted doubts. Her office said the omission in the press release was routine and that all district students admitted were listed, not only those she nominated.
Her campaign called the allegations of favoritism “a depraved attack” tied to Republican opponent Jack Ciattarelli.
The controversy comes on the heels of damaging reports about her past. The Naval Academy blocked Ms. Sherrill from attending her 1994 graduation following a cheating scandal, though she later completed her service and flew helicopters during her military career.
Mr. Ciattarelli seized on the revelations, demanding transparency. “What we learned today is that she was part of it in some way, shape or form. Come clean, release the records. Tell us what’s in your disciplinary records. I think the people of New Jersey deserve that,” he told Fox News’ Hannity.
The race, one of only two gubernatorial contests in the nation this year, has quickly become a referendum not just on Ms. Sherrill’s political record but also on her personal integrity.
[READ MORE: Fetterman Rejects Party Switch but Distances Himself From Progressive Extremes]
